Tuesday, February 18, 2014

A Dog, a Cat and a Rabbit

Hello,

It's nice to be back after almost a four week vacation in India. I stayed put in the apartment all the time-did not go out of town to for a visit or any recreational activities. My most enjoyable activities were yoga-six days a week and an hour walk every evening. There was no TV, no radio, no movies. I visited a cyber cafe when most children were at school and the cyber cafe was quiet. It was a good vacation.

This morning I read,

One in three Americans doesn't get enough of shuteye, and chronic deprivation can lead to long-term health problems. Another report from Australia said: We have an affluent, car-oriented, screen-dominated society where we eat as much as we like, we eat junk because it tastes good and it's quite cheap.

I also read stories about a dog, a cat and a rabbit. Didn't miss the one about wearable sleep monitors. If we want to be healthy, we want our children to learn healthy habits, exercise is an activity for life.

My readings led me to the following story.

Meera

A Dog, a Cat and a Rabbit

One morning, sixteen-year-old Sagar got ready. He felt well rested after a good sleep and thought, I can take on the whole world today. Nah, forget the world, I'll just deal with my sisters.

They both went into the eight-year-old twin's room and shook them by legs, "Come on girls, get up, it's time for our walk."

Suchi opened her eyes, turned around and covered her face with a blanket, "I'm not going."

Soori pulled off the blanket, "I am up, you have to be up too, for our walk."

Each of them had a banana for breakfast.

Sagar asked, "Tell me guys what do a cat, a dog and a rabbit have in common?"

Suchi said, "They have four legs."

Soori said, "They have fur."

Suchi said, "They like to run."

Sapna asked, "What if they can't run?"

Sagar added, "What if they have arthritis?"

"Huh?"

"Arthritis is a disease that affects bones of people as well as animals."

Sapana said, "Bhaiya and I are going to make sure that we do some physical activity when we are young so we'd be ready."

Suchi asked, "Ready for what?"

Sagar said, "Remember how grandpa had to have a knee replacement surgery some time ago? He had arthritis."

"So? I don't have any arthritis."

"Right, none of us do. But we are young and in case we get it when we are older--- Today we'll walk to the YMCA and do some swimming."

Suchi threw her banana peel into a trash can, "I'll also get a knee surgery when I am older. I'm going back to sleep."

Soori grabbed her arm,"No, you don't."

Sagar said, "Sleep is important. Even the Olympic athletes try to get enough sleep to get a competitive edge-to be a winner. You may sleep but not just now, after our swim."

On their walk to the pool, the older siblings told them the stories about how a dog, a cat and a rabbit were made to take laps to keep their limbs moving as a part of their physical therapy. The movement of limbs while swimming made them limber and they hurt less.

"Why can't they just walk on land?"

"Water, that's hydrotherapy is easier on the body, it does not hurt as it would by walking because the body stays afloat and does cause a lot of friction."

Suchi pouted, "Whatever..."

Sapna said, "Besides, exercise, any kind of continuous movement will release the endorphins in the brain and make you feel better. Elevate your mood. It makes you smarter."

Soori said, "Whatever, I do it because I like it."

Suchi said, "It will make me smarter? I'll get all A's in school?"

Sagar said, "Well, that depends on how much you study, how much you goof off and how much attention you pay in the class and do the homework and ..."

2 comments:

I get the impression that kids learn by what is around them. If everybody goes to sleep at 9PM, the kids will also. If Daddy is going for a bike ride, they want to do something. If Mommy has a vegetable tray out for snack, they assume that is what snack food is. I haven't had much luck with logic yet.

Right, children learn from the environment. I put peer-pressure under that category. That's why parents need to keep an eye on their children's friends and make sure 'bad things' are not around to tempt them. If the mom has a vegetable tray around and the dad sneaks in the kitchen to munch on chips, the children will follow the dad.